Background
Richardson High School is the flagship high school of the Richardson Independent School District (RISD). The school has magnet programs in fine arts, culinary arts, theatre, communications, robotics, law, health science and science, and award-winning mock trial and debate teams.
In the 2012 U.S. News & World Report rankings of the Best Schools in America, Richardson High School ranked number 711 out of 21,766 public high schools, putting it in the top 3.5% of all public high schools in the United States. RHS was also rated the 65th best in the state of Texas.
In August 2006, Richardson High School was named one of three "best practices" high schools in the state of Texas. The award granted by the National Council of Educational Accountability and the Just 4 Kids Foundation is based upon staff development, staff retention, standardized test scores and support programs for students.
In May 2007, the RISD was awarded the "Excellence in Education Award for Large School District in Texas" by the HEB Foundation. Richardson High School and Richardson West Junior High played instrumental roles in the selection process and hosted the site visit committee in March 2007. In addition to the award, the RISD received a check for $100,000.
The school, which opened shortly after the first public school in the city was burned down by Ross Inman in 1890, began in a two-room building on Old Pike Road, a street that is now part of Greenville Avenue. A rural school with fewer than 100 students up to 1950, the school opened its present facility in 1961. During the period of the late 1950s, RHS shared facilities with Westwood Junior High School on Abrams Road. Bill Passmore was principal during this transition into the new facility on Belt Line Road.
Richardson's sports mascot is the Eagles and the team shares Eagle-Mustang Stadium (capacity 11,000) with J. J. Pearce High School. The school's student news magazine is the Talon.
As of the 2010–2011 school year, the administration at RHS is led by Charles Pickitt, principal; Ramiro Lucio, senior principal; Michael Westfall, assistant principal; Josh Eason, assistant principal; Elise Curry, assistant principal; Sharonda Tims, assistant principal; and Talandra Griffen, assistant principal.
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